Shoe.



J. FRANK.

SHOE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG.17, 1911.

1,007,084. Patented 0013. 31, 1911.

COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH $0.. WASHINGTON. n. c

JOHN FRANK, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

SHOE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 31, 1911.

Application filed August 17, 1911. Serial No. 644,549.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN FRANK, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Shoes, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to improvements in shoes, and particularly to the class of shoes worn by ladies and styled pumps; and said invention resides in the novel means, hereinafter described and claimed, for securing, without sewing, the buckle to the front of the pump. It has heretofore been customary in securing the buckles to the front of pumps to sew the same in position, the two eyeleted side sections of the shoe being laced together at the outer side of the tongue and the buckle being secured by sewing, the threads extending through a hole or holes in the buckle and through the lacing and also through the tongue. This sewing of the buckles to the shoes involves considerable labor and expense, and in addition is not satisfactory because it does not allow of any adjustment of the shoe across the instep by the owner thereof.

The object of my invention is to dispense entirely with the sewing of the buckle to the shoe and to provide a buckle adapted not only to fulfil its usual functions but to dis pense with the lacing cord entirely and be capable of such manipulation as to permit an adjustment of the front eyeleted side portions of the shoe to suit the special needs of the wearer.

A further accomplishment of my invention is that it enables an ornamental tongue to be detachably applied to the shoe, by reason whereof the owner of a pair of pumps may have several difierent styles of detachable tongues therefor and by chang ing the tongues in the shoes from time to time alter the appearance of the shoes to suit varying occasions or create the impression of wearing entirely different shoes.

The buckle of my invention comprises a suitable external ornamental metal frame having a vertical cross-bar and a longitudinal bar crossing the vertical bar and adapted at its ends to be fastened to the shoe and also to the tongue, when desired, by being passed through the eyelets of the shoe and through the tongue and thereafter bent over. After the application of the buckle to the shoe a piece of leather is inserted below the buckle and over said cross-bars so as to conceal the same and present a finished front behind the opening in the buckle frame. The buckle of my invention is preferably made in one integral structure, the vertical and longitudinal bars being stamped from sheet metal and fastened at the ends of the vertical bar to the buckleframe in a rigid manner. I may, however, make the longitudinal bar in a separate piece of metal and utilized in connection with the buckle frame and vertical bar rigidly secured thereto.

The invention will be fully understood from the detailed description hereinafter presented, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a pump equipped with a buckle structure embodying my invention; Fig. 2 is an enlarged top view of a portion of the same, the covering piece of leather shown in Fig. 1 as concealing the underlying bars of the buckle frame, being omitted; Fig. 3 is a transverse section through a portion of the same on the dotted line 33 of Fig. 2; Fig. 41 is a detached back view of the buckle, with the piece of leather employed to conceal the buckle bars at the front of the buckle, being shown in position; Fig. 5 is an enlarged top view corresponding with Fig. 2 of a portion of a pump and illustrates a modified use of the buckle shown in Figs. 1 to 1 inclusive in connection with a detachable ornamental tongue for the pump, the ends of the longitudinal bar of the buckle being shown as bent outwardly through the eyelets in Figs. 1 and 3 and inwardly through the detachable tongue and eyelets in Fig. 5; Fig. 6 is a transverse section through a portion of the same, on the dotted line 6-6 of Fig. 5; Fig. 7 is a detached top view on a reduced scale of the detachable tongue represented in Fig. 5; Fig. 8 is a detached top view corresponding with Fig. 2 of a modification of the buckle, the modification consisting in employing a separate longitudinal bar in connection with the vertical bar in lieu of a longitudinal bar made in one piece with said vertical bar; Fig. 9 is a transverse section of the same on the dotted line 99 of Fig. 8; Fig. 10 is a vertical section of the same on the dotted line 10-10 of Fig. 8; and Fig. 11 is a detached perspective view of the separate longitudinal buckle bar employed in the structure shown in Figs. 8 and 9.

In the drawings, 15 designates the pump as a whole, 16 the side sections having the customary eyelets 17, 18 the usual tongue, and 19 the buckle secured over the eyelets 17 and the adjacent portions of the side members 16 and tongue 18 and carrying a piece of leather or other suitable fabric 20 be hind the open center of the buckle for concealing the said eyelets and the bars 21, 22 carried by the buckle frame.

The pump or shoe shown in Figs. 1 and 2 is, with the exception of the buckle construction, of usual character. The buckle 19 is however, of novel construction and, as aforesaid and as plainly indicated in Fig. 2, dispenses entirely with the use of sewing for securing it in place and also dispenses with the usual shoe lace commonly employed for connecting the forward ends of the side members 16. The buckle 19 is in the form of a rectangular metal frame having a substantially transverse opening in its central portion and outwardly curved to lit the shape of the shoe. The buckle 19 has secured to its inner side the ends of the vertical bar 21, the body of which bar sets inwardly from. the inner surface of the general buckle frame so as to afford a pocket for the strip of leather or the like 20 between said bar and buckle frame. The bar 21 in the construction shown in Figs. 2 to 6 inclusive is formed integrally with the longitudinal bar 22 which extends lengthwise of the buckle and transversely of the shoe and projects laterally at equal distances from the vertical bar 21 which is centrally disposed of the buckle. The longitudinal bar 22 is of pliable metal, and in the application of the buckle to the shoe the ends of said bar are inserted through the eyelets 17 and bent over in a direction toward the central bar 21, as shown in Fig. 2, for the purpose of securing the side sections 16 of the shoe together across the instep and of fastening the buckle itself to the shoe. The projecting ends of the bar 22 are of sutiicient length to permit of their extremities being folded over to variable extents for the purpose of adjusting the side sections 16 of the shoe with proper relation to the foot, whereby the said sections may be drawn closely against the foot and properly secured. The ends of the bar 22 may be bent outwardly through the eyelets 17, as shown in Figs. 2 and 8, or if preferred, they may be bent inwardly through said eyelets, as shown in Figs. 5 and 6, in which it will be noticed that the ends of the bars 22 project inwardly through the'eyelets and are then bent toward each other so as to secure the shoe sections 16 together. The buckle shown in Figs. 2 and 3 is identical with that shown in Figs. 5 and 6, but in applying the buckle in the manner shown in Figs. 5 and 6, the user will bend the ends of the bar 22 inwardly instead of outwardly through the eyelets.

One portion of my invention resides in the employment, with the buckle 15), of a detachable tongue 23, which will. preferably be of ornate outline and project upwardly above the said buckle, as shown in Fig. 5. The tongue 23 will be formed with apertures 24 and secured to the shoe by the outer ends of the bar 22, which will be inserted through said apertures 24 and thence through the eyelets 17 and bent toward each other, as shown in Fig. 6. The tongue 23 is detachable, and the owner of a pair of the shoes may possess several different styles of tongues 23 and vary the appearance of the shoes by changing the tongues thereof. 1 consider the employment of the detachable tongue 23 as a desirable feature, and it is to be understood that the ends of the bar 22 of the buckle may be bent outwardly through the eyelets 17 and apertures 24 of the tongue or inwardly through said apertures and eyelets, as the owner of the shoes may prefer. In every instance whether the ends of the bar 22 are bent outwardly or inwardly or whether or not the tongue 28 be employed, the open center of the buckle 19 will be closed and the bars 21, 22 covered over by-means of the extra piece of leather or appropriate fabric 20, the latter, as shown in Fig. 1, being at the outer side of the bars 21, 22, and having its edges concealed belowthe general frame of the buckle.

In the modification of my invention shown in Figs. 8 to 11 inclusive,I number the buckle 25 and its vertical bar 26, and in the employment of this buckle 1 make use of a separable longitudinal bar 27 as a substitute for the integral bar 22 of Fig. 2. The bar 26 is recessed at its center, as at 28, to afford a seat or pocket for the ends of the bar 27 when the latter have been folded over toward and across each other, as shown in Figs. 8 and 9, thereby obviating the objection of having several thicknesses of metal directly behind the buckle. The shoe shown in Fig. 8 isthe same as the one shown in Fig. 1, with the exception that the tongue is illustrated as having a different outline from that shown in Fig. 1. In applying the buckle 25 to the shoe, the ends of the bar 27 are passed through the eyelets 17, the buckle is then placed against the shoe and the ends of the bar 27 bent toward each other and across the vertical. bar 26 of the buckle, thereby fastening the sections 16 of the shoe together and securing the buckle to the shoe; thereafter a suitable piece of leather or other fabric 29, corresponding with the piece 20 in Fig. 1, is inserted endwise below the buckle 25 and over the bars 26, 27, so as to afford a suitable finish and conceal said bars. The buckle shown in Fig. 8 is presented to indicate that I do not limit the invention strictly to the formation of the bars 21, 22 of Fig. 2 in one integral piece of metal, it being possible to make said bars in two pieces fastened together, or recessed together, although I prefer the construction shown in Fig. 2.

The securing of the buckle to the shoe is accomplished without sewing, and in addition the invention dispenses with the usual shoe lace and facilitates the manufacture of the shoes. In addition to the invention enabling the changing of the tongues of the shoe for varying its appearance, as occasion may require, said invention also enables the changing of the buckles on the shoes so as in that respect to vary the appearance of the shoes as occasion might suggest. The owner of a pair of the shoes might possess several different styles of tongues and several clifferent styles of buckles, and with their use vary the appearance of the shoes as frequently as might be desired.

W'hat I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. In combination with a low-cut shoe or pump having eyeleted side-sections, a buckle structure applied over the front ends of said sections comprising a main open frame, a vertical bar spanning the opening in and set back from and secured at its ends to said frame, a bar extending longitudinally of said buckle and engaging said Vertical bar and at its ends passed through said eyelets and bent over to fasten said side sections, buckle and shoe together, and a piece of leather or the like behind the buckle frame and over said bars and closing the opening in said frame; substantially as set forth.

2. In combination with a low-cut shoe or pump having eyeleted side-sections, a separable tongue therefor, and a buckle structure applied over the front ends of said sections comprising a main open frame, a vertical bar spanning the opening in and set back from and secured at its ends to said frame, a bar extending longitudinally of said buckle and engaging said vertical bar and at its ends passed through said eyelets and said tongue and bent over to fasten said sidesections, tongue, buckle and shoe together, and a piece of leather or the like behind the buckle frame and over said bars and closing the opening in said frame; substantially as set forth.

3. In combination with a low-cut shoe or pump having eyeleted side-sections, a buckle structure applied over the front ends of said sections comprising a main open frame, a vertical bar spanning the opening in and set back from and secured at its ends to said frame, a bar extending longitudinally of said buckle and permanently connected with said vertical bar and at its ends passed through said eyelets and bent over to fasten said side sections, buckle and shoe together, and a piece of leather or the like behind the buckle frame and over said bars and closing the opening in said frame; substantially as set forth.

4. In combination with a low-cut shoe or pump having eyeleted side-sections, a separable tongue therefor, and a buckle structure applied over the front ends of said sections comprising a main open frame, a vertical bar spanning the opening in and set back from and secured at its ends to said frame, a bar extending longitudinally of said buckle and permanently connected with said vertical bar and at its ends passed through said eyelets and said tongue and bent over to fasten said side-sections, tongue, buckle and shoe together, and a piece of leather or the like behind the buckle frame and over said bars and closing the opening in said frame; substantially as set forth.

Signed at New York city, in the county of Kings and State of New York, this 15th day of August A. D. 1911.

JOHN FRANK.

IVitnesses:

C. H. MACDONALD, CHAS. O. GILL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

